I did it: I retired at age 40 with a net worth of about $5M. That was eight years ago. I diversified most of it, but I made two concentrated bets with a fraction and both of them were home runs. Now I'm above $5M. I have enough money to do whatever I want and my withdrawal rate is less than 1% annually. (I don't have expensive or flasy taste.)

One of the things that I didn't expect (but that this article and some other sources hint at) is that I would fall into a trap of consuming a lot of alcohol. I recognized my problem and dealt with it. Now almost every day is alcohol-free, and I only drink when with other people who are also drinking. (For anyone struggling with a drinking problem, I urge you to try something called the Sinclair Method, which involves taking naltrexone or nalmefene. [1][2])

I don't really have much of a fixed address and spend 95% of my time abroad. I usually like to stay in a place for several months or more at a time. This sometimes involves long-term visas. Throwing money at immigration attorneys will solve a lot of those kinds of problems. Many countries have visa programs for self-employed or self-sufficient people. If not, you can always enroll in a language program and get a student visa to study the language of your host country.

I also spend several months a year just traveling around to new places and visiting old friends.

I enjoy my life. Sometimes at moments I miss my job in Silicon Valley. Then I realize how much grief and pressure it was, and I'm thankful for the life I have.

At this article's author states: you have to know what you are going to fill your life with once you leave the working world. If you don't fill it with something positive, negative things will fill in.

[1] https://www.amazon.com/Cure-Alcoholism-Medically-Eliminate-A... [2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EghiY_s2ts

For those who have a problem with alcohol from being a bit of a drunk to an addict, there's a pill for that: Naltrexone, taken one hour before drinking, blocks positive reinforcement for drinking alcohol. This treatment is called the "Sinclair method."

Studies show Naltrexone and the Sinclair method prevents excessive consumption and over time can extinguish addiction. Over the course of a year alcoholics can basically totally lose interest in alcohol.

It's not a fringe treatment. It has been the standard of care in Finland for decades.

Here is a global listing of physicians familiar with the treatment: https://cthreefoundation.org/find-a-physician

These board certified physicians prescribe it in many states in the US via telemedicine consultations: https://www.mdproactive.com/what-we-treat/alcohol-use-disord...

(I'm suggesting this online practice because I understand it may be hard to find a physician familiar with this treatment in some areas in the United States.)

I went from being a bit of a drunk even by American standards to having no interest in alcohol after a couple pills.

The first time I took it, I knew it could have saved by grandfather's life.

It's really heartbreaking that so few people know about this treatment.

Anyone who likes alcohol would be amazed how useless it is without the opioid response (that Naltrexone blocks).

You can find papers about this on Google scholar: https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C14&q=sin...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naltrexone https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53JObexh0w0 https://www.amazon.com/Cure-Alcoholism-Medically-Eliminate-A... https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdeh0LP6kuSQ9GsorQpVnUw